I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to female breast support articles. More particularly the invention relates to breast area covering articles that minimize detrimental influence of electrostatic fields on breast area tissue.
II. Description of the Prior Art
The female breast is susceptible to several diseases of unknown origin. Worst among these diseases is breast cancer. There has been a huge, and unexplained, increase in breast cancer incidence in United States females over the past 20 years. Also, the rate of incidence continues to increase. A female in the United States today is 2.7 times more likely to incur breast cancer than her great grandmother was, and this is despite the beneficial diet and lifestyle changes that have occurred. The cause of this increase in breast cancer has not been understood, but the rate of increased cancer incidence in general is so large that the United States Department of Health and Human Services has speculated that xe2x80x9cU.S. citizens face a growing cancer risk from some as yet unidentified environmental factorsxe2x80x9d.
The inventor has discovered, and conducted numerous rodent studies to confirm, that exposure to environmental electrostatic fields (different from environmental electromagnetic fields) can directly promote cancer growth, and can also strongly increase the detrimental affect of chemicals on living tissue. This affect may be a large factor in the increased cancer incidence rates the U.S. is experiencing. Modern synthetic materials commonly used in the U.S., for example a nylon bra rubbing against a polyester blouse, can easily generate thousands of volts of electrostatic charge. Then, because of the extensive use of air-conditioning, which keeps humidity levels low, electrostatic fields from this charge can connect with the breast tissue for hours at a time. Methods of protecting breast and adjacent tissue from detrimental effects caused by exposure to electrostatic fields forms the basis of the present invention.
It is known that magnetic fields, and the magnetic portion of electromagnetic fields, can easily penetrate living tissue. This has been of concern over the past 18 years, with many studies conducted to evaluate the possibility of a causal link between electromagnetic fields and cancer. Yet, despite these years of research, very little affect from exposure to electromagnetic fields has been confirmed. Recent large studies in this area have again found no risk from exposure to these fields at the levels we commonly encounter them (Panel Finds EMF""s Pose No Threat, Science 274:910, 1996, and Magnetic Field-Cancer Link: Will It Rest In Peace?, Science 277:29, 1997).
On the other hand, little consideration has been given to the possibility of electrostatic fields (which are different from electromagnetic fields) exerting influence inside a living body. The electrostatic charges which produce these fields commonly occur when two materials rub together, for example when our clothing rubs together or against another surface. Even rubbing natural materials together creates electrostatic fields, but usually at lower levels than synthetic materials. As a result, humans are almost constantly exposed to electrostatic fields in our normal environment everyday. Also, the field influence is typically very strong because of the close proximity of the charges to the body. For example, under conditions of low ambient humidity, rubbing a shirt sleeve against a shirt, getting up from a chair, walking across a floor, can generate charges with potentials in the 30,000 volt range; however voltages in the 5,000 to 15,000 volt range are more common. Lower electrostatic potentials are almost always present around a person, even with moderate to high humidity.
However, unlike electromagnetic fields, electrostatic fields do not have a magnetic component and do not oscillate, so they have been assumed incapable of having influence inside living tissue. Quite to the contrary, the inventor has conducted numerous studies, using live animals, which leave no doubt that electrostatic fields can exert strong, and detrimental, influence inside living tissue.
As a result of the assumption that electrostatic fields do not have biological effects inside living organisms, there has been little research in the field. Several non-biological effects are known, however, and they have led to techniques for reducing electrostatic charges in certain situations.
One example of an undesirable non-biological effect of electrostatic fields is a tendency for a person who walks across a carpet when the humidity is low to generate and store electrostatic charges on the body. These charges can then be discharged into a computer or other piece of equipment that is touched, resulting in damage to the equipment. It is known that this problem can be reduced by coating the carpet fibers with an anti-static compound or by incorporating conductive materials within the carpet in order to allow charges to quickly flow back together, or to ground, as the carpet is walked upon. U.S. Pat. No. 4,490,433 is an example of this technology.
Another undesirable non-biological effect is that the field from an electrostatic discharge may ruin modern electronic components during equipment manufacture. Some semiconductor devices can be damaged by an electrostatic discharge as low as 30 volts, and as a result the electronics industry is a leader in using the broadest range of electrostatic charge prevention methods. The Electrostatic Discharge Association, 200 Liberty Plaza, Rhome, N.Y. 13440, an electronics industry association xe2x80x9cdedicated to advancing the theory and practice of electrostatic discharge avoidancexe2x80x9d, has many publications available on electrostatic charge generation, elimination, and test standards for the electronics industry. One known technique for reducing damage from electrostatic discharge is for assembly workers and others who handle sensitive components to wear conductive work garments (such as lab coats or jump suits) with grounding leads to drain off electrostatic charges. Similarly, conductive lab coats, etc., are used to prevent electrostatic sparks in areas where explosive gases are present. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,422,483 and 4,590,623 show examples of this technology.
Another technique for reducing damage from electrostatic discharge is to use ion generators to cancel electrostatic charges on surfaces. Generators of this type use high-voltage corona discharge, or nuclear (alpha particle) energy, to ionize air molecules. These systems typically produce and blow negative and positive ions into the air, where they are attracted to combine with and cancel electrostatic charges in the vicinity. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,008,594 and 5,017,876 show examples of this technology.
Attempts to protect the body from electric fields in general are also shown in the prior art. The methods generally involve covering the body area desired to be protected with a shielding layer in the form of metal or other conductive material. UK patent GB 2,025,237, and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,825,877, 5,621,188 and 5,690,537, show examples of this technology. Some of these references principally address shielding electromagnetic fields, which are completely different from static electric fields. The references that mention electrostatic fields make the erroneous assumption that a conductive shielding layer will stop electrostatic field influence as well as it does electromagnetic field influence.
The requirements for preventing influence from electrostatic fields are totally different than that required for electromagnetic fields. A conductive shielding layer will block passage of an electromagnetic field because as the oscillating field impacts the conductive layer it induces currents that produce electric and magnetic fields in the layer. As these fields are created, they reinforce the electromagnetic field on the incident side of the layer, but are out of phase with, and oppose and cancel, the field on the other side of the layer.
To the contrary, simply placing a conductive layer between an electrostatic charge and a body area to be protected will not stop electrostatic field influence from reaching the body. Electrostatic fields do not oscillate so they do not produce oscillating electric current that opposes the impacting field. The passage of electrostatic fields through a conductive material is shown by the physics xe2x80x9cSuperposition Principlexe2x80x9d which states that xe2x80x9cThe net electric force on a charged object is the vector sum of the individual electric forces on the object due to all other charged objects. Each individual interaction is unaffected by the presence of other chargesxe2x80x9d. A good explanation of this principle and its ramifications can be found in the book Electric and Magnetic Interactions, R. W. Chabay and B. A. Sherwood, John Wiley and Sons publishers, 1995. As shown by the Superposition Principle, the presence of conductive material between an electrostatic charge and an object (the human body for example) does not stop electrostatic field influence from reaching the object.
This can be demonstrated by placing a solid aluminum or steel plate between a piece of charged cloth and an electrostatic field meter, with the meter serving as the body area to be protected. Even a 2.5-cm (1-inch) thick intervening conductive plate will at best reduce the field influence by only around one-half to two-thirds. It does not stop the field and its influence is still detected by the electrostatic field meter (body). We of course cannot wear 2.5-cm thick steel plates on our body, but even reducing common electrostatic field intensity by two-thirds cannot be expected to protect the body from detrimental electrostatic field influence. For example, a 5,000 volt electrostatic charge (which is common) on a 1-cm diameter area of a clothing article 0.5-mm from the body of the article wearer exposes the body area next to the charge to an electrostatic field intensity of over 900,000 volts per meter (V/m). Reducing this field by even two-thirds would still expose the body to a field intensity of 300,000 V/m. The inventor""s animal studies have shown that an electrostatic field just one-fourth as intense as 300,000 V/m can strongly promote cancer growth.
Also, electrically connecting an intervening conductive plate, or other conductive material as noted in the prior art, to the body of a wearer, cannot be counted on to stop electrostatic field influence. Electrically, this simply creates a static conductive object (the conductive material) in contact with a dynamic conductive object (the body of the wearer) so that one side each of the combination of static object/conductive object is exposed. Electrostatic field influence will then pass through the static conductive object and dynamic conductive object as it continually tries to bring the charges in each to a point of static equilibrium.
It is also important to note that wearing a protective article that simply drains static electric charges cannot be counted on to stop electrostatic field influence. For example, if a woman wore bra incorporating an electrically conductive material to simply drain static electric charges from the bra to the body, charges would be removed from the bra surface. However if a blouse or other nonconductive article worn next to the bra became charged, these charges would not be removed. Electrostatic field influence from these charges would then pass through the bra and connect with the breast tissue. This also would not protect the conductive bra wearer""s breast tissue from static electric fields generated on other nearby clothing articles, such as from charges generated as a blouse and sweater rub together for example.
In summary, although the prior art teaches conductive shielding placed next to the body (including the breast area), or dissipating static charge by draining, etc., the prior art does not teach breast support articles and other breast coverings that minimize detrimental influence of electrostatic fields on breast area tissue by creating air ions to cancel electrostatic charges at the source generating the fields on both the breast support article and other charged surfaces in the vicinity.
The inventor has used in vivo studies to conclusively demonstrate that electrostatic fields can exert strong influence inside a living body, directly affecting cell operation and also strongly increasing the detrimental effect of chemicals on cells. Protecting the female breast area, which is particularly prone to cell damage, from these fields is very important. This can result in reduced breast disease, and lives saved.
The inventor has conducted animal studies that demonstrate that electrostatic fields can strongly influence cells inside living tissue, and has shown a direct connection between these fields and cancer growth. These are the same fields created when our clothes rub together or against other surfaces and create the static electric charges that generate electrostatic fields. All commonly used clothing material can generate electrostatic charges and fields, but popular synthetics like polyester, nylon, acrylics, and polyolefins are much better electrostatic generators than materials from natural fibers.
Wearing two layers of clothes can further enhance the generation and trapping of electrostatic charges, and thus increases exposure of nearby body areas to electrostatic fields from these charges. Significantly, the areas of the human body where cancer incidence is increasing most are almost all areas where two layers of clothes are normally worn. In breast cancer for instance, almost two-thirds of the tumors occur in the upper/outer quadrant and nipple area of the breast, even though the tissue is substantially the same in the other quadrants. This is the exact area where a bra and outer garment, such as a blouse or jacket for example, are in most intimate contact and where the surfaces of the bra and outer garment, or the surfaces of other outer garments, rub together most during normal movement to generate static electric charges and thus fields.
The inventor""s research as shown that the present invention is important in regard to cancer growth promotion, however it may well be just as important in regard to disease prevention. It is now known that more than half, and possibly as much as 80%, of all disease, ranging over such diverse areas as diabetes to cancer, is caused by genetic damage. The human genome in each cell is estimated to contain over 100,000 genes connected end-to-end, with the DNA of each constructed of around 3.3 billion base pairs. The specific DNA sequence is duplicated each time the cell divides. The gene damage responsible for disease occurs because of a point mutation, deletion, translocation or rearrangement in the DNA sequence of normal genes. For example, researchers have found that there can be up to 38 such mutations in the BRCAl gene, which results in an 85% chance of developing breast cancer. The fact that all genes are first assembled, and then connected together in the DNA strand, by natural electrostatic fields within the cell points to the real possibility that electrostatic fields exerting influence from sources outside the body may be able to alter the force of the bodies natural electrostatic fields enough to cause a miss, or missed, connection as the DNA strand is assembled.
III. Biological Degradation Theory
The following theoretical discussion is offered in an effort to aid in understanding and practicing the invention. However, it must be recognized that our knowledge of cellular operation at the molecular level is incomplete. The theoretical discussions contained herein are therefore not intended to be limiting on the invention in any manner.
The findings of the inventor""s studies involving electrostatic field influence inside living tissue are surprising and not predicted. As shown by Gauss""s law, there can be only zero electric field inside a conductive object in static equilibrium. It has therefore been easy to assume that the conductive nature of a mammalian body acts as any simple conductive object, with external electrostatic fields causing polarization and a shift in charges to achieve a point of equilibrium resulting in zero field influence inside the object. The inventor""s study findings demonstrate that a mammalian body reacts with an electrostatic field in a much different way than with a simple conductive object. In retrospect, Gauss""s law actually points to this because a mammalian body is known to contain and use countless continually changing internal electric fields as it constantly adds, releases, binds, and moves charged molecules to cause and control normal cell operations. It therefore cannot be considered to be a simple conductive body addressed by Gauss""s law. Also a mammalian body is highly nonhomogeneous and not a perfect, or uniform, electrical conductor. In fact the electrical resistivity of mammalian tissue varies enough that electrical impedance tomography is now being developed as a non-invasive imaging and diagnostic method
It may be that one, or a combination, of these two factors is the key to the electrostatic field effects in the inventor""s animal studies. The dynamic nature, and nonuniform conductivity, of a mammalian body may prevent the body from ever reaching a point of true static equilibrium. Therefore an imposed electrostatic field would not fall to zero at the surface as it would for a simple static conductive object. The electrostatic field would of course be reduced, but unless it drops to zero it could attract or repel normal cell charges and fields inside the body enough to affect cell operation.
As a direct example, the circulatory system continuously moves ionic fluid through the space between cells. Although the bulk of this movement can be relatively fast, it is known that a layer of fluid, which can extend 50 xcexcm or more out from cell membranes, remains almost xe2x80x9cunstirredxe2x80x9d. Ions influenced by the applied electrostatic field to slightly move from the bulk fluid to this stagnant layer would accumulate there, and would be very close to the cell membrane. Their combined field influence could then alter the existing transmembrane potential and surface charge density, thus opening a number of possibilities for reaction, migration of cell surface macromolecules, and transport of material across the lipid bilayer. It is likely that the electrostatic field influence applied to molecules of the moving interstitial fluid would be extremely small. However, movement of ions from the bulk fluid to the stagnant layer next to cell membranes would be accomplished by changing the direction of the velocity of the ions without directly changing the magnitude of the velocity. Thus no expenditure of energy (work) would be required from the field.
It is also known that the effect of migration of cell surface macromolecules may be transferred to the cell nucleus via microtubules and intermediate filaments spanning to the nucleus from many of these molecules. This identifies another danger from exposure to electrostatic fields. We now believe that almost all cancer is the result of a mutation in cellular DNA. As a cell prepares to divide, its DNA is duplicated so the original and progeny cells both end up with DNA strands. Cell cycle times vary, but consider a rather common time of 27 hours between cell divisions. During this period the cell goes through four phases in preparation to divide. DNA is replicated during the S phase of the cycle, in this case a time interval around 10 hours. During this period over 100,000 genes are moved from compartments in the cell and assembled, in the proper end-to-end sequence, to form the duplicate DNA strand. This is a high speed assembly line driven by natural electric charges and fields within the cell, and also the DNA is held together by natural electric charges. An unnatural electrostatic field influence (and that is what the inventors studies have demonstrated) could result in a miss, or missed, connection in the DNA strand. Of additional interest, it has been speculated that the majority of all major noninfectious disease is the result of DNA abnormalities. This includes a broad range of disease types, from Alzheimer""s to obesity for example.
IV. Environmental Electrostatic Fields
The inventor""s in vivo studies leave little doubt that electrostatic fields can promote cancer growth. There is also reason to believe these fields may be able to initiate cancer, either by directly causing DNA damage, or by increasing the effect of environmentally encountered chemicals on cells. Protecting body areas known to be particularly susceptible to damage, such as the female breast, from uncontrolled exposure to these fields is very important. Yet, our modern world has created an environment that favors generating and holding the static charges that create these fields. The United States has led the world in the increasing use of synthetic materials in our clothes and on other surfaces around us, and these are the dominant materials with which we now live. Polyester, nylon, acrylic and polyolefins, for example, are much better static charge generators than natural fibers. Also, unlike natural fibers, synthetic materials are hydrophobic and do not wick moisture from the air, or our skin, to provide conductive paths through which the charges can drain. In addition, over the past 20 years, the United States has led the world in the increasing use of air conditioning. This keeps the humidity of our environment low and favors the generation and holding of static charges over long periods of time. Humans are therefore almost constantly exposed to electrostatic fields from both our clothes and other surfaces around us.
As an example, the inventor has measured electrostatic charges generated by various activities at 50% relative humidity, and has found for example that removing a nylon jacket, while wearing a polyester shirt can leave a 1,980 volt charge on the center of the shirt""s front surface, and a 6,000 volt charge on the center of the shirt""s rear surface; that removing a rayon lined jacket, while wearing a silk blouse, can leave a 600 volt charge on the center front of the blouse, and a 4,300 volt charge on the center back of the blouse; and that getting up from between two cotton bed sheets while wearing polyester pajamas can leave a 3,100 volt charge on the front center chest area of the pajamas, and a 4,600 volt charge on the back center of the pajamas.
The fact that these electrostatic charges are typically very close to the garment wearer""s body exposes the body to very strong electrostatic fields. For example the inventor has demonstrated that rubbing a polyester blouse against a nylon bra can easily generate over 5,000 volts of electrostatic charge that can be less than 0.5 mm from the breast. A 5,000 volt electrostatic charge of just 1-cm diameter, 0.5-mm from the breast, exposes the breast tissue to an electrostatic field intensity over 900,000 V/m. This is a field 3 xc2xd times stronger than the field the animals in the following Study Example D were exposed to.
Without doubt, electrostatic charges ranging from hundreds to thousands of volts are almost always present on the surface of clothes we are wearing, and on surfaces we are rubbing against, even under relatively high humidity conditions. Charges on human skin are not of concern because they are able to disperse or drain along the relatively conductive surface of the skin, whereas charges generated on the surface of clothes, plastic covered chairs, etc. are trapped on the relatively nonconductive surface of the material. These charges can remain in place very near the body, with their electrostatic fields connecting to the body, for hours at a time.
The present invention is directed at protecting the breast area from detrimental influence from electrostatic fields by the use of specially constructed bras that react to impinging electrostatic fields by creating ions in the air that move to cancel electrostatic charges creating the detrimental field. Bras in the present invention utilize electrically conductive electrostatic field-concentrators (sometimes referred to herein simply as xe2x80x9cfield-concentratorsxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cconcentratorsxe2x80x9d, or xe2x80x9cconcentratorxe2x80x9d), at spaced-apart locations that operate to generate ions in the air that then move to cancel electrostatic charges in the vicinity. A conductive body, or bodies, comprising a plurality of field-concentrators exists on or within the structure of the bra. The field-concentrators are formed as a plurality of spaced-apart salient areas on one or more conductive bodies of material, on or within the structure of the bra. Outermost boundaries of each concentrator are characterized by a surface, typically a end, terminating at a distance at least greater than, and preferably 2 times or more greater than, the axial radius of the largest cross-sectional width of the concentrator body. In an alternate method, the ends of the concentrators are salient from the surface of the bulk of the conductive material by a distance at least greater than, and preferably 2 times or more greater than, the axial radius of the bulk of the conductive material at the immediate surface the concentrator is salient from.
These field-concentrators attract impinging electrostatic fields to preferentially connect with the conductive material of the concentrators. This causes the fields to crowd closely together on the concentrators, which in turn increases the field intensity to a point that causes nearby air molecules to separate into positive and negative ions. The ions carrying a charge opposite that of the charges generating the electrostatic field are then attracted to those charges, and the ions combine with and cancel the electrostatic charges generating the field. Thus bras under the invention can stop electrostatic fields at their source even if the source is not directly on the material of the bra, but is instead on another surface such as a blouse for example. This can help protect both tissue covered by the structure of the bra, and also even adjacent tissue not covered by the bra, from detrimental influence from these fields. This is important because many popular bra designs do not cover all of the breast tissue.
Bras in a preferred method of the invention will be principally formed from nonconductive material for comfort and low cost, but will incorporate a plurality of conductive electrostatic field-concentrators at spaced-apart locations. The nonconductive material may be any material suitable to construct bras or other breast coverings of the desired design. Such materials are well known in the garment industry, and examples would include fabrics as well as nonwoven, molded, cast, and extruded materials. Bodies of conductive material comprising electrostatic field-concentrators may be incorporated on or within the nonconductive material of the bra. In some methods of the invention, the bodies of conductive material comprising electrostatic field-concentrators may be supported by nonconductive material placed on or within the bra.
The inventor has used in vivo studies to conclusively demonstrate that electrostatic fields can exert strong influence inside a living body, directly affecting cell operation and also strongly increasing the detrimental effect of chemicals on cells. Protecting the female breast area, which is particularly prone to cell damage, from these fields is very important. This can result in reduced breast disease, and lives saved.
Accordingly, the method of the present invention has several objects and advantages. For example:
(a) to provide, for women in general, inexpensive, comfortable, and non-obtrusive breast support garments which can minimize detrimental effects on tissue caused by exposure of the breast area to electrostatic fields;
(b) to aid women who have already been a victim of breast disease in protecting their breast area from detrimental effects caused by exposure to electrostatic fields. In this regard, bras constructed under the methods of the present invention can be particularly important for women who have undergone partial or complete mastectomy because of their high risk of a return of disease.
(c) to aid people who have a familial predisposition to breast disease in protecting their breast area from detrimental effects caused by exposure to electrostatic fields.
(d) to minimize the ability of electrostatic fields to increase the detrimental effect of environmentally encountered chemicals on breast area tissue.
These objects, as well as other objects which will become apparent from the discussion that follows are achieved, according to the present invention, by providing specially constructed breast or breast prosthesis support articles, or other coverings such as brassiere inserts for example, herein collectively referred to as bras, which react to impinging electrostatic fields by creating air ions to cancel electrostatic charges on the bra, and also on other surfaces in the vicinity, to protect breast area tissue from detrimental electrostatic field influence.